‘Child In Need’ Petition Filed For Boy Stowaway

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MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO/AP) — Officials in Minnesota filed a petition Friday, hoping to intervene in the life of a 9-year-old boy who hopped onto an airplane from Minneapolis to Las Vegas without a ticket.

In the petition, Hennepin County Human Services and the Public Health Department say the boy needs protection or services because he’s a runaway and committed a delinquent act before age 10.

The boy slipped past airport security and a gate agent on Oct. 3 and onto a Delta Air Lines flight. He’s currently with Las Vegas Child Protection. His father said they expect him to be returned home on Saturday.

A hearing to assess whether he needs protection will be held after he returns to Minnesota.

According to the petition, Las Vegas Police turned the boy over to child protection agencies where he was initially placed in a shelter. He was moved after engaging in aggressive behaviors, which required a hospital hold, according to the filing.

Minneapolis Airport Police filed a report of theft on Oct. 2 after the boy took a bag from the airport carousel and brought it with him to a restaurant. According to the petition, the boy ordered food and beverages then went to the bathroom and left, without paying. The bag was found at the restaurant.

According to the petition, the boy stole a large delivery truck on Oct. 1 in downtown Minneapolis and drove it on I-35 to south Minneapolis, and eventually to Edina, damaging vehicles along the way. The report states the boy was uncooperative with police but was eventually brought back to his mother.

On Sept. 18, the boy was placed on a police hold after he was found at the Midtown YMCA unsupervised, swimming in the pool after it was closed. Police were called after the boy refused to say who his parents were or provide any information to the YMCA staff. After refusing to talk to police, he was taken to St. Joseph’s Home for Children.

The petition states numerous occasions where the boy ran away or disappeared while with his mother. On one instance in August, the boy’s mother told police he had behavior issues but was seeing a therapist. His mother declined community based family assessment services during that visit.

During an interview with police, the boy’s mother said he was suspended from school for aggressive behavior and has been suspended in the past. She said he has a tendency to spend the night at people’s houses without permission, or walking out when he’s mad.

According to Hennepin County’s website, child protection could involve a host of services, including removing a child from a home or appointing a social worker to the family.